


A Frequency Of Me And You

by Demonized



Category: Devil May Cry
Genre: 5V/3D, 5V/3D/3V, 5V/3V, 5V/3V/3D, Cannibalism, Corpse Desecration, Hallucinations, M/M, Mental Breakdown, Non-suicidal Cutting, Selfcest, Suicidal Thoughts, Time Travel, Twincest
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-31
Updated: 2020-01-21
Packaged: 2020-07-28 05:09:07
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 9
Words: 6,353
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20058529
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Demonized/pseuds/Demonized
Summary: It wasn't supposed to be like this. They were supposed to live together for the rest of eternity.





	1. Chapter 1

The scent of blood is heavy and cloying as I slowly regain consciousness, my head throbbing dully while there is an unsettling ache in my chest. There had been a blast, a trap of some sort, as we had approached the final Qliphoth root and all I can recall is something heavy barreling into me, throwing me clear of the immediate vicinity. _That fool_, I think bitterly as I stretch out my senses and search for my twin's presence. A faint frown curls my lips as I am met with nothing and then dread unfurls in my gut when I realize that the blood I'm smelling belongs to my brother. _No no no no no…_ And just underneath the thick smell of blood is a scent that is far more worrying, one that has fear and panic clawing at my chest as I struggle to open my eyes and sit up. The scent of charred flesh and hair becomes noticeable as I draw in a deep breath.

My every muscle protests as I finally sit up, my body cries out for rest, but I ignore it all and cast my gaze around for the source of my brother's blood. I find it, my throat closing up and my stomach churning at the sight of what is barely a corpse lying in a pool of blood at the center of a deep crater. I am at the very edge, where I had been _thrown_, overlooking what I _know_ to be… Something warm and wet gathers at the corners of my eyes as I stare at what little is left of my brother, my twin, my _mate_.

Numbness permeates my body as I all but crawl down to where my brother's remains are in a pool of blood that is far too deep. Little more than a head and half a torso, both of his arms missing past his elbows and severe burns covering the entirety of what is left of his backside. It was far too much for him to recover from, his healing ability having merely prolonged his suffering while he bled out. How long had I been out for? How long had he clung to life before passing? His heart no longer beats. What little skin remains has already begun to cool. All I can think of as I pull what is left of him onto my lap is how alone he must have felt in those final moments. How frightened he must have been.

Crystalline droplets splatter on his ashen cheeks and for a few seconds I am startled by their appearance before I realize that they're my tears. Thick red smears across his cheeks as I hastily try to wipe them dry only to be left staring at the congealing blood now marring his skin with wide eyes. It feels like something cracks and then shatters as a sob tears its way past my lips and I start crying harder while I cradle him to my chest.

"_Hey, Verge…"_

My legs go numb.

"_I know I've gotten insanely lucky in the past but this is something one or both of us might not come back from."_

My throat feels like it is filled with crushed glass.

"_If something does get me and you survive…"_

My eyes are hot and their lids heavy.

"_Could ya make sure there isn't anything left for the demons to get?"_

My body shakes uncontrollably for a moment, my stomach twisting and lurching at the very idea.

"_Promise me, okay?"_

"I promise."


	2. Chapter 2

An ache that goes beyond bone deep wracks my body as I step through the quickly made portal from the Underworld onto the doorstep of my brother's shop. My energy starts to waver, the last of my strength used in my endeavor to make it back to the Human Realm, and I stagger slightly before catching myself. Fatigue is beginning to set in as my adrenaline diminishes and I end up leaning against the sun-warmed doors for a moment, my eyes threatening to close. I need to hold on for just a little bit, a few seconds at most to turn the knob and enter the safety of Dante's shop, and then I can collapse.

My hand shakes as it closes around the knob. The door feels impossibly heavy. The world starts to spin and then a hand clad in a worn leather fingerless glove presses against the door just above mine. "Lemme get that for ya, bro." His breath tickles the back of my neck. I can feel him behind me, pressed against me in this moment as he helps to push open the door. I cling to the feeling of him even as it fades, the door finally swinging open to reveal the slightly dusty and moderately tidied lobby of my brother's shop. "Welcome ta Devil May Cry, Verge."

I collapse just inside the threshold, unable to move any further, and let my eyes close. I'm too tired to care about the fact that I'm sprawled out on the floor, that I have obstructed the entryway and that the one door is wide open. To be more accurate I simply can't find it within me to care. My reason for caring about anything is…

"Yer not gonna sleep right there, are ya?" he asks as he nudges my side none too gently with the toe of his boot. After a moment of silence on my end he gives an exasperated sigh and carefully starts turning me over. "Get yer rest, big brother," he whispers softly and I let myself succumb to my exhaustion as he scoops me up.

The slamming of a door jolts me back into consciousness and I immediately roll out of a bed to land on the floor in a crouch, Yamato materializing in my hand. I draw her from her saya as I scan my surroundings, searching for the source of the noise, only to find myself in a bedroom. Dante's bedroom. His scent still lingers despite how long we-I was gone. As for what had awoken me, rather who…

"It's probably yer kid," Dante suggests as a pair of heavy footfalls rush up the stairs. "Yeah, that's definitely Nero."

I dismiss Yamato with nary a thought and lower myself to the floor to sit, slouching against the bed, just as Nero bursts through the door. He has that overly complex sword of his in hand, no doubt assuming that I was an intruder of sorts, but he lowers it at the sight of me. And what a sight I must present, still covered in dried blood and filth.

He goes pale, his mouth dropping open, then looks around the room, no doubt trying to ascertain the location of my twin. "Where's-"

"Dead," I interrupt sharply and his gaze snaps back to me. "Now leave me be."

"Man, Verge, ya sure do have a way with delivering shit news," Dante comments from my side while Nero gapes at me in disbelief.

"Go," I snarl when the boy doesn't budge, jolting him out of his stupor. His expression darkens with anger and he draws in a deep breath. "Now!" My voice cracks. Tears start to form, gathering at the corners of my eyes.

It's enough to make him pause, his anger shifting to something else. He regards me for a few seconds more with this new expression then turns to leave. "I'll try to keep Lady and Trish away." The words are softly spoken over his shoulder as he pauses in the doorway, the lines of his body stiff. He waits a few seconds then finally leaves, pulling the door shut behind him.

A tremble wracks my body as I sit here in silence, my tears streaking down my cheeks. I draw my knees to my chest, loosely wrapping my arms around them, and give a soft whimper.

"C'mere, Verge," Dante whispers as he curls an arm around me. He pulls me towards him, drawing me onto his lap, and presses a kiss to my temple before tucking my head under his chin. "I've got ya."


	3. Chapter 3

"We should get ya cleaned up,"Dante murmurs after a while, stirring me from the light doze I had fallen into. "And maybe wash the blankets."

"Then they won't smell like you anymore," I protest, drawing back to look at him.

He chuckles, the sound warm and full of mirth, the corners of his eyes crinkling slightly. "Silly. Ya have a wardrobe full of clothes steeped in my scent," he counters and touches his forehead to mine. "Wash the blankets, Verge."

"Fine," I grumble and he grins at me, his expression still as vibrant as it was in life. He vanishes after a few seconds, leaving me to slowly get up from the floor on my own. My body protests with a new sort of ache, my joints unpleasantly stiff, but I manage to stand and look around the bedroom.

It is…tidy. Surprisingly so. Like night and day compared to the messy and disorganized state the lobby had been in from the vague flashes I can recall of the time I had been split into V and Urizen.

Why?

"Because I wanted this to be a space that you would find acceptable." He reappears over by the writing desk sitting along the wall opposite of the bed with his back to me. For a few seconds he is perfectly still, head bowed in such a way that I get the impression that he looking down at the book that had been laid open on the desktop, and then he turns to regard me. "One that you could have shared with me one day."

His gentle admission brings about a painful twisting in my chest accompanied by the all too familiar sting of tears. I barely swallow past the sudden lump in my throat as I shift my gaze from him to take in the bedroom one more time. It would have made for the perfect nest but now we'll never get to share it the way that he had intended. "I wish you were here."

"I know," he answers softly, a sad smile drawn across his face while his eyes glint with unshed tears. He watches me for a moment longer then turns back to the desk and reaches for the book. "There's no coming back for me but maybe…" His voice trails off and he vanishes from in front of the desk, giving me a clearer view of the book, a journal.

I want to go over and inspect it for myself, my curiosity piqued, but first I need to get cleaned up and into some fresh clothes. It would be a shame to ruin the nest my brother had put so much effort in maintaining and the journal certainly isn't going anywhere. My mind made up I slowly peel everything off and pile it onto the already filthy blanket on the bed.

"Bathroom's over here." Dante's voice comes from my right and I look in that direction to find a door already partially ajar. There's no further sign of my brother, just that softly issued statement.

The bathroom proves to be as clean and tidy as the bedroom, a clear extension of the nest meant for us. I take a moment to familiarize myself with its layout, noting where everything is kept, then step over to the shower once I am ready. The water comes on, the pipes rattling slightly for the first few minutes because of disuse though it heats up quick enough.

I step under the hot spray, flinching a little from the initial sting of it, and close my eyes. The heat of it is physically refreshing, soothing away the bone deep ache plaguing me, though I cannot find it within myself to actually enjoy it. After a minute or two I exhale softly and lean back against the slightly cool tile as I open my eyes.

Dante smiles faintly at me from underneath the spray, a hand coming up to cup the side of my face, and leans towards me. "If someone could do then it'd definitely be you," he murmurs, his statement odd and seeming very out of place.

"What are you talking about?" I ask softly and his smile widens a little before he brushes his lips against mine.

"You could-"

A loud crash from downstairs interrupts whatever he was going to say and is quickly followed by shouting. I can barely make out Nero's voice among the cacophony, along with that of a woman's, prompting me to sigh.

"Promise ya won't kill them?" Dante asks quietly as he pulls back, looking weary and…

"You're fading!" Panic fills my voice and terror grips me at the thought of him vanishing for good.

He chuckles, like something is funny about the fact that he's growing more transparent by the second. "I'm just low on energy is all. A little rest and maybe some blood and I'll be as good as new." He rubs the side of my face just before he vanishes completely, his lips curled into a smile.

Hearing that doesn't make me feel any better. The worry, that loathsome panic and terror, are still present, and it takes me a moment to collect myself before I can even begin to scrub myself clean. The shouting from downstairs has at least subsided and I can, with some effort, sense the presence of two others accompanying my son's down in the lobby. One is familiar enough, the human woman that I can recall from Temen-ni-gru, while there is something _troubling_ about the other, a demon.


	4. Chapter 4

"Look, I know you're upset over losing Dante, we all are, but you can't just lash out at his friends," Nero half-growls at me as he stands between me and my brother's _friends_. The human woman, Lady as he had called her, is tending to the thing he had called Trish, which is still currently pinned to the far wall of the lobby by nearly a dozen of my summoned swords.

My hands shake where I have them clenched at my sides as I stare at the thing wearing my mother's face. They're curled tight enough that my nails are biting into my palms and there is the faintest flicker of satisfaction in its eyes. The scent of this thing is unmistakeable and though the feel of the energy is not how I remember it… I know-I _know_ who I am looking at. _Mundus._

Not the whole of him, no, but a fragment. One small enough that it _should_ have been unnoticeable. Having split myself has given me a better understanding of such a matter and it is more than clear to me. I am **not** mistaken in _this_.

I force myself to remain still, to not act on the urge to destroy the vessel outright. There has to be a reason why Dante had allowed this thing's continued existence beyond the fact that it looks like… "He used her corpse," I whisper numbly as the realization hits me. That has to be it. I can't think of any other reason why my brother would let a piece of Mundus walk around.

"What?" Nero's question is sharp. Loud. It draws the human woman's attention away from-towards us, her expression odd. "Say that again." He blocks my attempt to move around him, going so far as to reach out to touch me only to retract his hand when I shift my gaze to him and glare.

"Not now," I grit out before I teleport past him, my focus immediately returning to the human woman and…the vessel. I had thought that she might have been trying to help it but that doesn't appear to be the case. She hasn't touched any of my summoned swords at all, instead it seems that she has been checking on a ward that has been placed on the vessel's chest.

"It's still intact," the woman states, her voice filled with relief as she pulls back from the vessel. She turns to face me, her expression immediately shifting to one of displeasure and mistrust. "Do you know what would have happened if you damaged even a piece of that ward?!"

I step closer to examine the glyph that forms the basis for the ward and ignore the human as she reaches for one of her many guns. My lips press together in a frown that only deepens as I study the ward and it confirms what I am already certain of. "Yes," I answer plainly, my voice sounding oddly hollow.

Had Dante believed that mother could be brought back? Was this what he was trying to tell me? _You idiot._ If there had been a chance to do so it has long since passed. We are nearly thirty-six years too late in _that_ regard.

"Which is why it needs to be destroyed." That smugness the vessel had shown earlier is nowhere to be seen. Instead it looks like it is shocked and do I detect fear? My observation of it is cut short as I sense more than see the human aim her gun at me, specifically for my head. I don't even bother looking towards her since her guns are more of a nuisance than they are a threat. "Do you know that that ward is for?"

"It's what's keeping Trish _alive!_" There's that name again. Such a mundane and human sounding name. It is an odd choice for the vessel to have picked it out for itself but I am not interested in such a matter.

"It is what binds Mundus' soul shard to my mother's corpse," I state icily, making the human flinch. She lowers the gun, her eyes going wide while her complexion pales, and she backs away with an uncertain look towards the vessel. Her reaction makes it evident that Dante had kept that vital piece of information from her, probably even going so far as to feed her that bit about the ward keeping the vessel alive. It isn't quite a lie though is it? The soul shard _is_ keeping the vessel alive by being bound to it.

"Not just a corpse! Your mother is still in here, Son of Sparda," the vessel states quite frantically. "Preserved-"

"Eva Fairchild is beyond any means of resurrection," I interject and materialize Yamato with barely a flick of my wrist. "Do not think you can attempt to fool me as you did Dante," I snarl and within the blink of an eye I plunge Yamato straight through the center of the ward. Straight through the long still heart of what was once my mother. Like a puppet whose strings have been cut the corpse slumps down where it is pinned in place, nary a sound leaving it as the soul shard is expelled. It is a tiny and glimmering thing, pale yellow in color, that bounces to the floor where I quickly crush it under my heel without even giving it a thought.


	5. Chapter 5

"Just what in the hell is going on?" Nero asks as I withdraw Yamato from the corpse and dismiss her with but a thought. He moves closer, his steps hesitant, while the human woman puts some considerable distance between us.

I say nothing at first, instead casting a pointed look at the human woman over my shoulder. She seems to catch on to my silent demand though her expression hardens and she straightens her posture as if in defiance. As much as I want to maintain at least part of Dante's wish for me to not kill his _friends_ I have no patience to deal with her, if at all. "Leave us."

Her jaw tightens slightly and she looks ready to argue with me but with a glance towards Nero she seems to reconsider. "I swear, if you do anything-"

"You'll what? Kill me? Do not presume that whatever affiliation you had with my brother will stay my hand should you threaten me again." Nuisance or not I will not idly stand by and let her even think that she can threaten me. "Now leave, Mary." The timbre of my voice deepens slightly as I draw upon my blood and my power and start to slowly shift to my demon form. It is nothing more than an intimidation tactic but it attains the desired effect. Her leaving.

Nero at the very least knows well enough to wait until she is gone and the doors to the shop are firmly shut before he starts in on me. His expression is both troubled and pensive as he first looks to me and then to my mother's corpse. "Who is Mundus?"

"I don't know whether I should be surprised or disappointed that you're even asking me _that_." My tone is sharp and has Nero flinching ever so slightly, his gaze snapping back to me. He looks guilty and confused and it is evident that he simply doesn't know. "Of course Dante wouldn't tell you," I surmise mostly to myself.

"Dante didn't tell me a lot of things, including the fact that he was my _uncle_ until he was forced to," Nero grits out bitterly, his gaze flitting away for a scant second. "So no, I don't know who Mundus is."

"Dante had his reasons for wanting to keep certain things from you, perhaps because you were his last living family member at the time and he didn't want to get you involved with the demon that was responsible for our mother's death and had enslaved me for nine years." I watch with disinterest as Nero first gapes at me in shock, only to look away when what I take to be pity flashes across his face. "So knowing at least that much try to understand why it is that I don't want to discuss Mundus any further."

The floorboards creak slightly as Nero moves closer to me and it takes everything I have to just stand here and let him approach. He at least stops an arm's length away, his energy fluctuating slightly along with his scent. "I want to say that I understand and that I won't press for answers but you're the only family _I _have left and I want to know _more_."

"You should tell him," Dante whispers softly to me.

"No," I snap out in response to them both and shift my attention back to the corpse still pinned up. I dismiss the summoned swords and catch it in one fluid motion, carefully cradling it to me. "And it is not up for discussion."

Dante gives a soft sigh while Nero's energy spikes and his scent sharpens with anger. "Why not?!"

"Because the details of my life are something I do not wish to share, not even with you," I snarl at him over my shoulder, allowing my energy to flare. "Now if you don't mind, I need to take care of my mother's corpse."

Nero draws back at the glare I send his way, anger simmering in his eyes and bleeding out of him as his energy spikes again. He clenches his jaw, a slight tremor running through him, before he spins on his heel and storms out. The slam of the door behind him echoes in the ensuing silence, with a sort of finality that I am actually okay with. It is for the better with what I will need to do.


	6. Chapter 6

I drop down onto the couch in the lobby, both mentally and physically exhausted to the point that I don't even bother trying to revert to my human form. The couch protests, not quite able to hold the entirety of my demon form, but I ignore it and shut my eyes for a moment. Mother has been taken care of and I don't expect to be bothered again, if ever, so now is the best time to give Dante what he needs.

Devil Sword Dante materializes in my hand, the black organic metal that makes up his blade seemingly perfect, untouched by the blast that had destroyed his body. I run my fingers over the flat of his blade, tracing the dips and grooves of the lava-like crust running the length of him, and he hums faintly in response. His reaction is sluggish, no doubt from being drained of the energy sustaining him.

I turn Dante over in my grasp and press my bare palm to his edge, splitting it open as I draw my hand back up along him. He absorbs my blood almost instantaneously and the hum that he's giving grows stronger. After just a few seconds his blade splits open, a red glow ensconcing his entire form, and then a familiar weight settles on my right shoulder.

"I'm sorry," Dante whispers and he wraps his arms around me from behind. "I knew he was lying but I just couldn't bring myself to do anything about it. I couldn't attack mom's body."

"I know." I make another pass along the edge of his blade with my palm, ignoring the drain on my energy as Dante absorbs more of my blood.

"Verge, that's too much," Dante states worriedly and tightens his arms around me. "I don't need any more."

"It's not enough, Dante." I can't let him fade again. I can't risk it. "Just a little more, okay?" I go to slide my palm against the edge of his blade one more time only for him to catch me by the wrist in a firm grip. "Dante, let go."

"If you give me any more blood while you're like this you'll be cutting into your own lifespan." Dante squeezes my wrist and pulls my hand away from the edge of his blade, leaving me with little choice but to acquiesce. "You need to rest too, Vergil."

"I need to make sure you won't fade again," I state quietly even as I gently set him to my right, leaning him against the couch.

"Verge…" Dante lets go of my wrist and for one alarming second his presence vanishes entirely. He reappears straddling my lap, his expression pensive as he studies me.

I try to not crush him against me as I wrap my arms around him. I _know_ that doing so won't hurt Dante in the slightest but he is in his human form and I still fear the possibility of harming him. A laughable notion considering that he is dead. "I can't risk losing you again."

"Vergil, you know you're stuck with me, right? I'm bound to you, permanently, so even if I fade for a while I'll still come back." Dante reaches up and brushes his fingers against the bony ridge of my jaw before he leans in to touch his nose to mine. "Cutting into your lifespan to feed me won't help, okay?"

"Okay," I whisper, nuzzling my nose against his.

Dante smiles, a hint of sorrow in his eyes, and brushes his fingers along my jaw again. "Get some rest, yeah?"

"Only if you don't mind me sleeping right here." I really don't have the energy to move from the couch, as inadequate as a location as it is for sleep. By the way that Dante's smile widens it is safe to assume that he approves of my decision to stay put, not that it was much of one to start with.


	7. Chapter 7

It kinda sucks being reduced to little more than a hunk of metal but it beats the alternative. I don't think Vergil would have been okay with the alternative, especially since he isn't okay with how things currently are. I don't blame him. I myself had pretty much given up on living when I had thought that Vergil was gone forever. I just hadn't been able to go through with taking my own life and that is probably where Vergil and I differ.

I hate thinking that Vergil most likely would have killed himself in the event that **this** didn't work out the way that it had. With Yamato at his beck and call I know it would have been all too easy for him to make that decision and see it through. That's just how Vergil is. It's how he's always been. It's one of the things that I admire and love most about him.

I do wish that things didn't have to be this way. I suppose it's only natural to wish that things had turned out differently, that we had both survived. We're two halves of a whole, meant to complete the other, and existing on the same frequency. There's no one else in this world that can compete with that and now…

Now…

Now we fix it. Vergil's problem, not mine. Mine is irreversible, of that much I'm certain, but Vergil's… If he can complete what's in my journal then… he'll be okay. He'll be whole again. He'll be happy.


	8. Chapter 8

I'm pulled from my slumber by the familiar prickle of Nero's energy at the edge of my senses and I slowly crack open my eyes. I'm still in the lobby of Devil May Cry, that much is a given, but I've moved from the couch in my sleep. My new location is quite a curious one in that I've apparently chosen to cram myself under Dante's desk—still in my considerably bulky demon form—and with Devil Sword Dante no less. It is actually quite a comfortable spot as far as my instincts are concerned but it isn't the nest that awaits me upstairs.

I could get up and greet Nero at the door—be a proper host—but I am content to stay here where it is reasonably dark. The truth is that I have no inclination to forge any kind of connection with my offspring, at least not any more. Even if Dante were to urge me towards it the desire simply isn't there. Such a thing, had it ever existed, probably died with my brother. Even knowing that there is little I can do to dissuade Nero of such notions. Stubbornness is a trait we all share and Nero seems to have it in spades if his return is any indication.

It is just as well that I do not get up because Nero lets himself in—a dangerous habit to maintain when dealing with another demon. At least he is alone. And quite curiously he is taking care to keep quiet as he moves into the lobby. Even more curious is how he carefully wraps himself in his own energy to portray himself as unassuming.

I finally stir from the comfort of the desk's confines, which prompts Nero to go perfectly still, and clamber to my feet. The immediate area around the desk is undisturbed but the rest of the lobby is in absolute shambles, as if a war had been waged here. Nero flinches as my gaze finally settles on him and I am admittedly surprised to note that he looks ready to flee. It is a cause for concern, as is the state of the lobby, but one that should be addressed in a more approachable form than my current one.

The shift back to my human form isn't as easy as I remember it to be, something I will have to ponder on later, but Nero relaxes slightly at my transition. "So, uh, I take it that you're back to, uh, being you?" His rather tentative question is enough to give me pause and reevaluate the current state of the lobby along with Nero's behavior.

"Quite," I state as I carefully survey the damage to the lobby. A great deal of the damage had been made by very sharp claws—my own to be precise—and there are signs that I had been protecting the desk. Most of the damage is old, by days at the least, leading me to conclude that I was out for much longer than a night. "What is today's date?"

Nero blinks at my question, a little puzzled at first, then frowns. "It's the twenty-second of July… Why?"

"Because I don't know how long I've been _out_." I hate to admit such a _weakness_ but it is far more troubling that I have apparently lost time and in that lost time had gone into what seems to be a feral state. I honestly don't know if it's a one time thing or if it will happen again but Nero's being here will be beneficial. I can only assume by his behavior and approach into Devil May Cry that he had visited quite often.

"What's the last thing you remember?" There is a hint of concern in Nero's tone but he makes no move towards me. In fact he is still on guard, as if I might attack him at any given moment.

"You slamming the door on your way out." I don't dare mention Dante's sword or apparition for fear of Nero jumping to the wrong conclusions and trying to _help_ me. Nero would not understand the complexity of our situation, probably not right away. Probably never. Dante is dead and yet he is also the sword. Bound to me, he had said. So, no, I don't dare mention it to Nero. "And then I went to sleep."


	9. Chapter 9

"That was a week ago," Nero says softly and he starts to take a step towards me—towards the desk—but he apparently thinks better of it and stops himself. "Is it safe for me to come over there?"

I am not surprised by his question in the slightest given my observations and the conclusions I've reached from them, and I am almost certain that—given these conclusions—his safety cannot be guaranteed. Not while Devil Sword Dante rests at my feet underneath the confines of the desk. "No."

Nero sighs softly at my response but doesn't make any further movement towards me or the desk. "Any particular reason why?" It is a mere curiosity on his part, after all I had been guarding the vicinity of the desk and he has no doubt noticed it.

"Yes." I expect my simple answer to frustrate him but he just sighs again and takes a step back, a look of resignation drawn across his face.

"Right, no prying," Nero says softly, most likely meant for himself, and he relaxes enough that he doesn't seem like he's going to flee at a moment's notice. He finally takes a moment to look around and register the state that the lobby is in, giving a slight grimace at all of the destruction I had caused. "Is there anything I can do to, ya know, help out?"

I ponder his offer for a moment as I too let my gaze roam back over the destruction and I honestly can't find any reason why I should deny him wanting to help in some way. There's actually plenty that he can help with considering I've been absent from this realm for quite some time, to the point that I would hardly know where to begin. "I can take care of the repairs on my own but I will need tools and materials, cleaning supplies and groceries."

Nero returns his gaze back to me and he frowns slightly while he shifts from foot to foot. "I can maybe get a few basic things but I don't-"

"I will give you the necessary funds to acquire what I need if that is your concern." It will, of course, require me to go out and get the money, a task that I am not looking forward to but I have no other alternative. Nero cannot make a withdrawal on my behalf and it is unlikely he is even aware that I do, in fact, have a bank account.

"Why am I not surprised," Dante grumbles softly in my left ear while he settles his chin on my shoulder. The rest of him is just a light pressure along my backside and nothing more than that. "But how exactly are ya gonna get them ta give ya anything when you don't even have yer bank card or a form of identification?"

Dante makes quite a point, one I haven't given any thought, but that is something that can easily be rectified. It might take some time but I am still certain that I can get enough money for what I am currently asking of Nero.

"Yeah, okay then. I'll get you whatever you need," Nero says, showing no indication that he can hear or see Dante.

I'll have to be careful to not respond or react to my brother whenever he decides to say or do something while I'm in Nero's company—or anyone else's for that matter—even if it means sometimes ignoring him. I'm certain that Dante won't mind at all.

"I **do** mind, Verge, but I get it. Don't want anyone thinkin' that yer crazy," Dante answers my thought with a soft chuckle and a nudge of his nose against the side of my neck. It draws a very slight twitch from me, much to my irritation, but Nero doesn't appear to notice.

"I will need to make a trip to the bank first," I state as I silently will Devil Sword Dante to return to my soul. While I trust Nero to not wander around I am not comfortable with leaving Devil Sword Dante unattended. "If you would like to accompany me then give me a few minutes to clean up and change clothes."

There is a brief flicker of surprise in Nero's eyes but he gives me a nod. "I'll wait for you outside," he says softly and with a faint smile.

I dip my head in acknowledgement then turn on my heel to head upstairs. Dante follows after me and I don't have to look at him to know that he's grinning. "Do not mistake this as me caring for the boy," I murmur to him once I am certain that Nero is out of hearing range.

"I wasn't gonna say anything, Verge," Dante says cheekily and I roll my eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've started up a discord server called The Desk! It's not fandom specific and meant to be a place for artists, writers and people who enjoy their works across various fandoms to come together. To get to The Desk simply go to https://discord.gg/jXZQDdf


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